Second chance
by Kisshu4eva
Summary: Drunkenly passed out one night in a dark alley, Meiko is taken home by well-meaning Kaito, and finds herself starting to fall for him. Singing career in ruins and getting drunk every night, producer Kaito helps Meiko start to rebuild her life. But will Meiko find a true second chance at happiness with Kaito, or will she fall back under the bad influence of Haku and alcohol?
1. Chapter 1

**Hey guys! this is my first MeikoxKaito fanfic, LOVE the pairing :3 It will contain mature content about alcohol and a little bit about drugs(though nothing major) and it may eventually be smut, I haven't decided yet. Please remember to review, and I hope you enjoy! ~kisshu4eva**

The room spun alarmingly. Colours blended together before her eyes into vibrant swirls of bright colour. Every outline appeared fuzzy around the edges. Bright white lights danced around her vision. All she could see was bathed in a warm, blurry orange glow. A buzzed feeling of elation and invincibility swept through her. In this world, there was nothing but fun, the perfect place to escape the dark, worrisome thoughts that normally invaded her mind. The deep rhythmic beat of the music vibrated through her body as she swayed dizzily in time to it.

The almost empty bottle of sake was gripped loosely in one hand. She was surrounded and packed in on all sides by other people dancing to the music. She took a swig and drained the remnants of the glass bottle, some of the alcohol sloshing down the side of her face and causing her short brown hair to stick to her cheeks, rosy from the heat and sweaty from the proximity of other people.

She chuckled evilly and slowly made her way through the heaving mass of dancers and drinkers to a crowded table where a girl with long grey hair tied back in a loose pony tail with a ribbon sat, surrounded by other young men and women . The table was almost completely concealed under empty bottles of sake and other alcoholic drinks. The grey haired girl was alternating between laughing and singing loudly.

"Hey, Meiko!" She yelled as the brunette stumbled over and dumped her empty bottle on the table. "More sake, or are you finished already?" She asked teasingly, grinning through her heavy lidded, red eyes. Meiko grinned back and leaned on the table.

"Shut up Haku, everyone knows you're a total light-weight," she replied, smiling back. The whole table burst out with laughter. Haku stood up and wobbled over to Meiko, gathering her into a big slatternly hug.

"Next round's on me," She slapped her palm against Meiko's, leaving several notes in her palm, before re-joining the others at the table. Still grinning stupidly, Meiko traipsed over to the bar. It was rather crowed, so after a little pushing and shoving, she eventually wound up facing the barman. She leaned heavily on the bar, and slowly lifted her head up to meet the unfriendly eyes of the bar tender. She shrugged it off.

"I-I neeeeeed…" her words slurred helplessly. She quickly twisted round and counted the number of people she could make out at the table. 6 people, including herself. "6 sake's," she slapped the notes in her hand onto the counter and slid them across to the man. To her annoyance, he slid them back across the surface to her.

"I'm sorry, but it is club policy to not allow to give more than one drink at a time to anyone who is clearly under the influence of something," the boredom in his tone clearly showed he wasn't sorry. How dare he not be sorry! Meiko's brown eyes flashed dangerously.

"Oh, come _on! _That's not fair! I'm not druuunk! And I'm not gonna drink it all on my own!" Sadly, her words slurred again, not backing up what she was saying. Still the man shook his head. She tossed her hair off her face in annoyance-why shouldn't she have all the drink she wanted? An angry impulse over-took her. She jumped and lunged over the counter. Her body flew over the shiny worktop, and then she tumbled onto the floor, landing unceremoniously on her behind with a mad laugh.

Angry cries rose from the people waiting to order drinks and from the bartender, but they fell upon deaf ears. She hauled herself to her feet, and glanced around to see if she could find a fridge containing sake, but black spots appeared before her vision, and she had to grab the alcohol dispensers to keep from falling over, until it passed. The bartender started yelling at her, even though she just ignored him. God, he would just _not_ shut up! Just as she moved to throw something at him, she felt a strong pair of hands grab the tops of her arms from behind, and begin to drag her backwards, out of the bar.

She cried out indignantly and tried to dig her heels into the ground, but couldn't find a purchase with her high platforms, or break the tight grip on her arms. Desperately she craned her neck and twisted from side to side, shouting and searching for Haku, who was nowhere in sight. The crowd of dancers and drinkers parted like the sea as she was dragged out of the door by the muscular guard. The cold breeze outside hit her face bracingly as she was roughly turned and pushed out the door. Angrily, she turned and attempted to push past the guard, and when that proved unsuccessful, aimed a sloppy punch at him. "My friends are in there! Get out my waaay!" she yelled drunkenly. He easily deflected it and sneered at her.

"That was some stunt you tried to pull in there. You're not getting back in tonight; just go before you embarrass yourself any further! Or do I have to call the police?" That was it. She was _really_ angry now. She glared at him darkly, hair flying about her face, smoke practically pouring out of her ears. He took a step backward, looking more than a little terrified. However, before she could think of any smart retort, all the fight left her body, and she turned around and walked off. It was slow going, the drink made her slow and heavy on her feet. She had turned down one street when she slipped off her heels, and carried on barefoot, improving her coordination.

Managing to reach a liquor store, she splashed the remainder of her money on 5 bottles of sake, grinning insanely and singing wildly in the shop. "You're my bestest frieeeeeeeeeeeeeeeend..." she slurred at the shop owner, trying to envelop him in a massive hug. Looking more than slightly terrified, he sent her on her way. The five bottles were gone before she was more than two streets away, left a broken trail of glass on the ground. Out of options, she just kept walking.

She didn't think about where she was going. It was one darkened street after another. Now the cheer and euphoria of the drink had worn off, the silence deafened her ears, and the lack of life in the deserted streets gave her the sickening feeling of being the only person in the entire world. She quietly began to moan Haku's name, until it gradually got louder until she was yelling it at the top of her voice. '_Where are you Haku? Where am I? I can't be alone!' _The thoughts whizzed around inside her head. She couldn't see, it was dark, it was cold, the silence only broken by her moans, which gradually ceased.

Inevitably, she could walk no further. A sickening feeling tightly gripped her chest and stomach, as she reeled and retched, clinging to an alley wall. She really had drunk a lot of sake tonight. The black spots from earlier returned, and grew larger and larger, until they completely covered her sight. She dropped her heels-which landed with a loud clunk on the floor-and pressed her hands to the sides of her skull against the agony in her head. Finally, her legs trembled and buckled beneath her. She saw the ground rushing up to meet her, flung her hands out in front of her-and then she hit her head on the ground, the darkness took over, and she could remember no more.

* * *

'_Finally finished for the night.' _Thought Kaito to himself, turning off the lights in the recording studio with a sigh. Yet another disappointing late night. It wasn't that they couldn't sing or dance, or didn't look the part, they were all amazing. Just not in the way he needed them to be. They didn't sing the words with real passion, with the feeling or emotion, or solemnness needed for the songs he had in mind. There was a difference between singing and saying words to music. Again he sighed. '_I need a new voice, or this project is doomed'. _

This was one of the problems he regularly faced as a song producer, not to mention the late nights and early starts. Tightening his long scarf around his neck against the bitter cold and biting wind, he turned the key in the door lock and began the small walk to his car, recognizable as it was to him in his favourite shade of blue. He was just starting to walk to his car, already wrapped up in thought, when his foot connected with something heavy that fell over with a clunk. Looking down, he realized it was a high heeled shoe. He glanced around for the owner, speaking aloud.

"I wonder who-HOLY SHIT!," he jumped, noticing the woman lying passed out in the alley. A puddle of-eurgh-vomit was lying close by. 'Must be drunk,' he mused. How long had she been here? The winter night was cold, and she was shivering unconsciously. She was, he noticed, really quite stunning; the short skirt and cropped t-shirt showed off her curves, and the low cut shirt showed off a LOT of cleavage.

'OMG those are huge!' the dirty part of his brain trilled. 'Ewww brain, not NOW!' he mentally slapped himself. He already looked dodgy enough, a tall man in a long coat and scarf kneeling over an unconscious, scantily clad woman in a dark alley. 'So, what do I do?' A quick search of her-which a small part of him enjoyed, to his horror-came up with no phone, purse or ID. He could call the police, but what could they do? There was nowhere to go, but he couldn't just leave her to freeze to death… 'Maybe I should just take her back to my house?' the thought was worth considering.

On the one hand, he had no idea who this woman was and it made him look kinda creepy, but he couldn't find an alternative. With a sigh of resignation, he slipped one arm under her knees and the other under her arms, bridal style. She was surprisingly heavy; she was very curvy and quite muscular, but it was nothing he couldn't easily handle. Pressing the button to unlock his car, he pulled open the door to the back seat and carefully placed her across it, and then jumped into the front.

The short drive to his flat took twice as long as normally, as he drove slowly to make sure she didn't fall off the back seat. The light from the street lamps illuminated her face in the wing mirror, red lipstick and dark eyelashes. In fact, he was looking at her so long he almost hit a lamp post and had to slam on the breaks and swerve to a halt. Shaking the spikes of his long blue hair out of his eyes, he whipped his concentration back to the road. Eventually they reached the tower block of flats.

He parked sloppily on the curb directly outside, scooping her up off the back seat again. Her mouth fell open; she was deeply asleep. His flat was the entire top floor, but luckily there was a lift. Each flat took up about a floor and there were 5 floors. It was an inconspicuous white plaster building in a quiet suburb, perfect for a single person. He slowly entered his flat after opening the door and took her straight to the spare bedroom, laying her down in the centre of the large single bed. He didn't dare change her into something more comfortable, but her left an aspirin and a glass of water on the side table. He then just stood regarding her for a few minutes and pondering his situation.

'I just picked up a random, unconscious stranger off the street and took her to my house,' the realization dawned on him. Shaking his head at his own endless stupidity, he quickly changed into his boxers and t-shirt, then finally went and lay in bed. The clock read 3:38 am.

'Ah hell…' was the last thought that crossed his mind before sleep claimed him.

**0_0 Wow, long, I know, took forever to write. Next chapter will be better, they characters will actually meet eachother properly :3 Please remember to review, thanks guys! **


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey guys! Sorry it's been so long since I updated, I have many stories on the go at once, and suffered from writers block! Hopefully people are still reading this :3 Took me forever to write, hope you enjoy!**

**Special thanks to;**

xXKittyEarsXx **for encouraging me to continue and being such a hardcore Mei/Kai fan! And also**

**VampireKat for also being such a big fan of the pairing and being such an amazing reviewer! **

**This chapter is for you two!**

**~Kisshu4eva~**

Pale ribbons of yellow morning sunlight shone on her face, heating her closed eyelids. She nuzzled her head deeper into the smooth pillow. Suddenly she was struck by an agonizing pain in her head, and groaned. A sharp throb ached in her temple, as if a knife had been plunged through her brain. _'Great, another hangover…' _the thought came to her slowly, as if through a fog that was clouding her head. With a sigh, she rolled over in bed, revelling in the soft sheets and their enticing warmth. Wait. Bed?

Instantly, her eyes snapped open. The bright sunlight shone into her eyes, temporarily blinding her. She flung her arm over her eyes with a moan, her limb swinging in a massive, lazy movement she could not control. Eventually, the black dots cleared from her vision and she took a bleary glance around the room.

It was a simple, square room, probably about 3 metres by three metres, at a guess. The walls were a simple cream coloured plaster, and the room had a very minimalistic feel to it; the only furniture was the bed, wardrobe at the foot of the bed, bedside table and lamp sitting atop the table. Her eyes focused on a tall glass of water on the table along with some aspirin, and she suddenly realized how desperately parched her throat was.

The cool water slid down her throat, like an otherworldly blessing in her state, and the aspirin followed soon after. After a couple of minutes spent lying down, the pain in her head cleared slightly, and she was able to assess her situation. This wasn't the first time she had woken up in another person's house, although it was something she tried to avoid as much as possible…at least when she was sober. But there was no man beside her, and this was a _single_ bed…

She couldn't remember anyone from last night, at all. That was unusual. In fact, all she could remember was walking the streets alone. She wracked her brain hard, a frown creasing her features as slowly she began to get flashbacks. There was an alley, the ground rushing up to meet her, impact, and then…nothing. A horrified gasp escaped her lips as she took in the full enormity of her situation.

She hadn't gotten off with anyone last night, the fact it was a single bed made that obvious, and she was definitely not at a friend's house. _'I must have passed out in the street…anyone could have taken me home! I could be the prisoner of some pervert, or maybe it's a psychopath!'_ The thoughts ran through her head, her breathing becoming short and panicked. Taking a deep breath, she raised her hand and slapped herself across the face. This was no time to be panicking! However, she mentally commanded herself to never slap herself again-it hurt.

Rising from the bed, she risked a quick peek out of the door into the hallway. It was about 9:30 according to the clock. The hallway was long, with several doors branching off into different rooms, including one with a translucent door that looked like a kitchen, perhaps. There was a large, brown front door at the end of the hall, but the lock was fastened and she could see no key. Her shoes were gone, and she was still in her sluttiest crop top and skirt from last night.

There were no stairs, a flat maybe? Clutching the door to stop herself falling over with the waves of giddiness, she boldly opened the door slightly more, until she could poke her head into the corridor. The only other objects in the corridor were a coat and scarf, hanging on a peg, and a pair of shoes and boots_. 'So, clearly a man lives here…this is just getting better and better_,' she thought grimly. Suddenly, she heard movement in the kitchen, the sounds of a kettle, and saw a shadow moving towards the door.

Hastily, she shut the door as quietly as possible, wincing as it slammed shut. She heard the sounds of a door being yanked open, muffled footsteps approaching. She gasped nervously, pressing back against the wall next to the door. If her captor entered the room, her only chance would be to attack from behind, and then run. Assuming she wasn't so hung-over that she would faint at the first attempt at physical effort. Her hand slid down the wall of its own accord and grabbed the glass, gripping it like a weapon. There was a soft knock on the door-how unusual, did kidnappers normally knock? Then the door slowly creaked open.

An arm appeared, and then a head of long blue hair. He stepped fully into the room, glancing side to side in bewilderment. That was the only chance she needed. With as much force as she could muster, she raised the glass with a yell, and brought it crashing down onto his skull.

**Kaito P.O.V**

The blow struck me on the back of the head. Blinding white light flashed across my vision, and flowers of pain blossomed in my temple. Ah, crap. So she was awake. And clearly didn't like waking up in a stranger's house. HOW did I not see this coming? Although stunned, there was not enough force behind the hit to do me any real damaged, and I staggered, turning round to face my assailant. She was already crashing through the door, stumbling down the corridor.

"Hey, wait!" I yelled. I staggered and turned, rushing after her through the door. The dizziness faded and I stood upright, my senses returning. I could see her standing ahead of me, yanking on the front door handle. I hadn't had a chance to unlock it yet, and the keys were still in the bowl on the kitchen, not that she knew that.

"Stop! I can ex-" She whirled round at the sound of my voice. OK, the look in her eyes scared me. She wasn't afraid, she was…mad? Furious? Insane? '_I'm not sure which it is…'_ I thought. Her brown eyes were flashing dangerously

"Whaaaa! Stay away, you PERVERT!" She screeched. She darted into the living room, and I quickly followed. Pervert? Why am I a pervert? _'Admit it'_ the sickening part of my brain whispered '_she is pretty hot! And have you ever seen such a massive pair of-'_ I mentally slapped myself before I could start having a nosebleed, chasing after the madwoman instead. This looked so bad! Not only had I taken home a complete stranger, I was now chasing said sluttily-dressed woman around my home. Great…

She was on the other side of the room, using the sofa as a line of defence whilst she searched for a weapon. Seeing me, she let out an outraged yell.

"Let me out you creep!" she began picking any random thing she could find and throwing it at me. A pillow smacked me in the face. I raised my hands in my own weak defence, not entirely sure how to react.

"Umm, there seems to be some confusion here, can I just-"

"Pervert!"

"It's not what it looks like-"

"KIDNAPPER!"

"I swear! Just calm down and give me a chance to-"

"Never! Let me out! I'll scream! And call the police!" I didn't move. If I let her out, the first thing she would do was call the police and that would only cause more trouble. But it must be scary, waking up in a strange man's house…

Seeing my hesitation, she seized a poker from the fireplace and began jabbing it in my direction. The sharp tip hit me, glancing along my arm and drawing blood.

"Ow!" I yelped, jumping backwards. Wow, manly. However, she kept lunging and missing, and seemed slow and sluggish; she must still be hung over. That was the only way I had any chance of keeping my life, judging by the murderous intent she emanated. She lunged again, and I just managed to turn sideways, feeling the air whoosh as it passed millimetres from my side. This was the opportunity I needed. I grabbed it in one hand and yanked it from her grasp, tossing it to the side while simultaneously pulling her off balance. Before she could correct her balance and sending a silent apology to god for what I was about to do, I rugby tackled her around the waist and we toppled onto the sofa.

The air whooshed out of my lungs as we landed with a thud, me on top of her. It was hard to tell whose limb was whose; she became a mad flurry of whirling arms and legs as she attempted to land a hit. She fought pretty hard, but eventually I managed to restrain her, although I did end up pinning her arms by her sides and using my body to keep the majority of her weight restrained underneath me. She began to scream, so I automatically put one of my hands over her mouth, the last thing I needed was a neighbour to interfere now. '_Wow, this is kinda hot…'_ the dirty part of my mind trilled.

I had to admit, rugby tackling and pinning down the scantily clad woman who had just woken up in my house thinking I was a rapist was probably not the best first impression to give. Damn my life.

"Ok, I know this looks really bad," I started. She rolled her eyes, and I think she almost laughed, had I not been covering her mouth. Oh, great. "I'll try to explain. My name's Kaito, and I'm a music producer at dreamy theatre. I was walking home last night and I saw you passed out in the street…" She frowned, as if confused. At least she was listening. "Call me crazy, but you looked cold and I thought you might get hurt if I left you there, and I had no way of knowing who you were, so I thought bringing you back here to the spare room was the best idea," I winced even now at my own stupidity

Her eyes had stopped flashing now, and her demeanour said 'I want to kill you' slightly less. "Ok, if I take my hand off do you promise not to scream?" She sat there, unable to reply, and staring at me expectantly. Jeez, just how stupid am I? Bracing my ears, I slowly peeled my hand off her mouth.

She let out a heavy breath, and then frowned at me. At least she didn't scream, right?

"Well, _this_ certainly has been a morning to remember," She remarked dryly. I winced. "Sorry, but in what universe do you expect a woman to wake up in a strange man's house, where she is later rugby tackled by said man, and _not_ scream or panic or assume the worst?!"

"Sorry…" I mumbled.

"Yes, you will be!" The menace behind the words made me scared, eyes widening as I stared down at her. She laughed manically. I think she may be insane. Noticing I was still in a fairly suggestive position on top of her, she began to wriggle again, but with less intent to kill.

"Get off me you perv!" She snapped. Cheeks burning with shame, I awkwardly crawled off her backwards, until I was sitting at the end of the sofa, looking at her. She sat up, and straightened her crop top, then breathed out a long sigh, head in her hands. I studied her closely, looking to see if she was preparing to attack. Noticing she looked visibly calmer, I let out a sigh of relief.

After all that, I was really hungry. There were pancakes in the fridge I had been about to prepare before all this. And ice-cream… My head lulled back as I happily began day dreaming about pancakes and ice-cream.

"Well then," her voice snapped me out of my reverie, and she looked up suddenly. I was so shocked I fell off the arm of the chair with a yell, letting out a yelp. She must think I have so much class. I heard a throaty chuckle from on the sofa and felt heat rise in my cheeks. Trying to hide my blush, I stood up to look at her. She was smiling devilishly, and I tried not to blush even more.

"Breakfast?"

**Phew! That took forever! :3 And they finally met properly! Just realized he still doesn't know her name, I'll have to save that for next chapter. I also realize I write Kaito as quite a dirty-minded person. . Oh well, please review guys! Love you all!**

**~Kisshu4eva~**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey guys! Sorry for taking so long, writers block to blame! Longer chapter than the others but still a quicker update than last time! Cookies to **

**xXKittyEarsXx for being my first reviewer, for the encouragement and always reviewing**

**VampireKat for also reviewing and for the praise.**

**In reply to whoever wrote 'Please add more and add smut', there is a strong chance I will later, but I'm not sure, so let me know through your reviews wether or not you think I should.**

**Thanks! **

**~Kisshu4eva~**

Breakfast consisted of thick scotch pancakes with maple syrup and ice-cream. The rich flavours burst on her tongue, leaving her in a state of stupor. It had been ages since Meiko had last eaten pancakes for breakfast; being honest she was never normally up early enough to eat anything classed as breakfast. They ate in the kitchen, on the small table laid for two. She was so hungry that for the first 10 minutes she didn't even look in his direction, instead guzzling her food like a starved child. After her appetite was under control, she slowed down and actually paid attention to Kaito.

She studied him more closely. He was most definitely tall, at least a head tall than her, and slim as well. Beneath his blue shirt she could just about see some vaguely defined muscles, and his biceps were quite big. His hair was an unusual deep blue, and so long it hung in messy spikes over his eyes, which were the same blue as his hair. Unusual, but cute.

He ate lots. Literally loads. He seemed to be something of an ice-cream addict, finishing half a two-litre tub by himself. '_And I thought I ate loads!' _It was a bit awkward at first, neither knowing particularly how to start conversation. What did you say to the random stranger who had picked you up off the street? It didn't help he was still in pyjamas, and her a questionably small cropped t-shirt and skirt. Nonetheless, they eventually relaxed into the flow of conversation, and then they didn't stop.

"Breakfast is gorgeous," she said,

"Oh thanks!" he smiled happily, cocking his head to one side cutely "I love ice-cream!"

"I can tell!" she joked. More rich ice-cram and pancake batter burst into flavour on her tongue. "I haven't eaten breakfast like this is almost a year,"

His eyes widened in shock; clearly food was a serious affair in this house. "Why ever not?"

"Can't afford it most of the time, or I'm not up early enough," she blurted. The frank honesty of the comment seemed to shock him slightly.

"Do you work?"

"Yeah, in a diner," She tried to gauge his reaction; most people assumed she was useless once they knew where she worked. Thick. Stupid. It wasn't a great job, but it paid the bills.

Just.

"If not on food, what do you spend all your money on?" his voice was tinged with shades of confusion. For some reason, she automatically felt like she trusted Kaito, and decided to be honest with him.

"Sake. I go out most nights. I like to party," His eyebrows raised speculatively. "Things don't normally go as badly as last night, though," she added quickly. "Which I'm very grateful for, by the way. Very few people would do all this for a stranger".

"It's no problem. I couldn't just leave you there,". He smiled briefly, then looked away. "What exactly happened last night?"

"Well, basically, I had a _little_ misunderstanding with the bar man and got kicked out of the club, and I'd just had a bit too much to drink. Come on, we all been a little bit drunk, right?" He just looked down rather than answer her question. This wasn't good. Sensing the conversation was beginning to go pear-shaped, she quickly changed topic.

"So, as I haven't been given a chance to tell you yet," Her voice took on a dangerous edge, and she saw him grimace. Feeling slightly guilty, she softened her tone. "My name is Meiko. Where exactly am I?"

He let out a long sigh, some of the tension draining from his shoulders. "Nice to meet you properly, Meiko," He carefully pronounced her name, as if testing it out.

"Um, same, I guess…" There was an awkward pause. He spooned himself some more ice-cream. "Do you have any sake?"

"This early in the morning?!" his voice was incredulous "And aren't you kind of hung-over?" he questioned timidly. She rolled her eyes sarcastically.

"It was a _joke!" _Even to her own ears, her voice was laced heavily in sarcasm_. _He looked away sheepishly. Wow, he sure was timid. "What was your surname?

"Shion," He answered. "Kaito Shion". His name was familiar now. She searched her foggy memory, still clouded with her hang-over. Something about twins sprung to mind… The memory struck her like lightning.

"Wait, not the same Kaito Shion who produced those two preppy blonde twins-what were their names...?"

"Rin and Len? Yeah, that's me" he flashed a grin. A very attractive grin. "Let me tell you, they are just as annoyingly cutesy in real life as they are on TV, even if people like them,"

"Is that even possible?" she remarked dryly. They both laughed. He had a nice laugh, throaty and deep.

"I used to be into music, when I was about 16. I don't know if you've ever heard of the song man-eating conchita?," His mouth dropped open in awe and recognition, clearly he knew her then. "I had a producer called Gakupo, he was a bit of a perv," She left her explanation there, deciding not to bore or horrify him with the gory details.

Gakupo was a dark part of her life she didn't like to linger on. Luckily Kaito seemed to just brush over it.

"I love your work!" he squealed happily. "Ever since I was 18 and I first heard I thought you were amazing! Why did you stop?" He was certainly animated now, gripping the edge of his seat and leaning towards her. His eyes were like huge royal blue saucers.

"Well, there were several reasons…I was a bit young, and silly…"She trailed off, quiet now. She didn't glance up from in her lap, but she could tell he was thinking about her antics last night and putting two and two together. Fine, let him think her a mad alcoholic. Rather that than him hear the full truth.

He got up very suddenly, making her jump as the piercing sound of his chair scraping the tiled kitchen floor assaulted her ears. Her plate was swept out from under as he slid over to the sink in one stride. His legs were very long. There was a raucous clattering of plates as he callously dropped them into the sink, and immersed his hands in the warm soapy water to clean them.

She was suddenly painfully aware of her bed-ruffled hair and her smudged make-up from last night. She must look like some kind of demonic vampire.

"Is there a bathroom, or somewhere I can shower?"

"Down the hall, to the left," He didn't look round. It was weird, considering they had only just met, but really felt concerned for his opinion of her. Almost like it mattered. She had given up caring a long time ago, so why would it matter now? Besides, it was never likely to have been a good opinion from the beginning. What else was a person meant to think of the violent, intoxicated women they found unconscious in a street? He must have such contempt and pity for her.

Ears burning, she quickly swept out of the kitchen and into the bathroom. It was a decent size, with a bath and shower, and everything was immaculate white porcelain. Spying a fluffy white towel on the radiator, she quickly stripped and stepped into the shower, turning it on full blast.

The boiling jets of water hit her with extreme, almost painful force, scouring her skin as she cleansed her face and hair. She tried to relax, allow her mind to empty. She imagined her worries pouring out her ear, like dark rivulets of oil, and washing away down the sink with all reminders of last night. There was no shampoo, so she just used a generous helping of the masculine shower gel on the small shelf. After 5 minutes she stepped out onto the dark blue rug, and pulled a towel around her body.

Her options were limited, but in the end, she brushed her teeth with her finger-at least she wouldn't smell like a tramp now- and towelled her hair dry hurriedly, wiping her face in the process. It wasn't until it was too late that she realised some of her excess makeup had rubbed off onto the towel. The stark black and peachy smudges stood out brilliantly against the dazzling white of the towel. "Oh, bloody fantastic," She moaned.

Chucking it into the sink, she desperately scrubbed at the stains, only making them worse. It now covered almost a third of the small hand-towel. She let out a horrified yell. She couldn't let him see this, it was too embarrassing! She dashed over to the small window. The glass was fogged over, though it cleared quickly as it smoothly slid open and the cool winter air swept in. The breeze brushed its cold fingers through her hair and down her spine, a chilling embrace. She shivered against the bracing chill. She bunched up the towel and launched it out the open window.

It opened out briefly, like a gentle white flag of peace, floating daintily through the empty air, before dropping out of sight. Not waiting to see where it landed, she pulled her clothes on and folded the bigger wet towel. At least she felt fresher now, if cold. Her taste in clothing tended to be a bit on the…skimpy side. She stumbled through the door just as Kaito was about to knock.

She crashed into his chest, the air whooshing from lungs as she was winded. It was like smacking into a brick wall.

Ow.

Trying not to grimace, she looked up at him. He seemed shocked, if anything, but was smiling all the same.

"I thought you might need a coat, it's cold out," he thrust a black jacket into her hands. She cautiously accepted, pulling it on. The warmth enfolded her and she let out a happy sigh, melting into it.

"So, where am I?"

"This is my flat, we're basically on the outskirts of Tokyo, near the big hotel they just built," She nodded, planning her root home in her head. She extended her hand to him in a handshake.

"I'm going then. Thanks for everything, really. If there's any way I can repay, let me know," he shook her hand in his, his grasp big and warm. She then swept past into the hall, pulling the hood up over her ears and grabbing the front door handle.

"Oh, no!" he yelled down the corridor to her. Confused, she turned round. He jogged down the corridor, grabbing his keys from a bowl in the kitchen and winding a scarf around his neck. "I'll drive you,"

"Oh it's fine, really-"

"Nope, honestly, I can't let you walk home alone like this, and it'll be twice as quick," Not waiting for an answer, he ushered her into the corridor and locked the door. She had to take a minute to pinch herself and check this was real, that she wasn't in some beautiful dream.

Whenever she woke up at a man's house, it was really common practice that she just left and walked, she never expected a lift (not that one was ever offered) or anything more than basic politeness in the morning, and now to be given all this from someone she hardly knew…

The word 'gentleman' sprung to mind. '_Wow, people like this__** actually**__ exist"._ The short flight of stairs took them down 4 floors, each one with two flats. She noted, happily, that he had the biggest flat in the building.

The exterior of the building was as immaculate as its interior, pristine and white. Classy. With a growing sense of worry, she realised just how long it had been since she stayed anywhere nice like this. _'God, I hope he doesn't come in to my flat, a neatness freak like him would probably faint.' _They filed out onto the street in comfortable silence, until…

Oh no. No way. Why could the earth not open up and swallow her whole? There, on the roof of his car, was the towel. THE towel. The one covered in makeup. Of all the most unlikely, unlucky events to occur in her life so far, this was definitely the worst.

He seized it between fore-finger and thumb, then turned to look at her. She couldn't meet his gaze. Her face had turned bright red, she could tell from the heat rising in her cheeks as she glared furiously at the ground. He started laughing. Quietly at first, and then throwing his head back and really hooting, she noted when she chanced a glance up.

She couldn't help but giggle too. How silly had she been, throwing it out the window? Talk about desperate measures. He screwed it up into a ball and chucked the sopping wet cloth onto the backseat, and then opened the passenger door for her. Still giggling, she stepped inside.

The interior was soft black leather. He sat down next to her and keyed the ignition. The engine roared to life like a dragon roused from sleep.

"Dirtying a towel isn't a criminal offence," He chuckled sarcastically. "It if were, you'd be in huge trouble now, for perverting the course of justice as well". His tone was light, teasing.

She couldn't stop the slow grin spreading across her face.

"I think I should be sentenced to death by electric chair, O great judge Shion," She joked back.

"Nah, I'm not that kind," he looked over at her smiling also. "But, you could tell me your number," having input her address into the SatNav, the car was well on the way, cruising through the calm suburban and city roads. She glanced at him as he asked for her number with a questioning gaze. Was this…?

"No! No, not like that!" He broke in quickly. She snapped her attention back to the road, annoyed at herself for letting her mind even consider it. "As I was saying, I really like your music. It's part of what inspired me to become a producer," such high praise left her glowing, it had been a long time since anyone had said such nice things.

"thanks, I guess, but that doesn't explain why you want my number."

"Hang on, I'm just getting to that. Ok, I'm gonna level with you," he looked at her in the sides of his vision. "I haven't had a good hit in ages. I can't find the right voice for type of compositions I have in the works, and I really think you might have a good shot at it. We could both do with the second chance."

She tensed at the hidden implications in his words. Here it was. The pity. The only reason he had helped her all along. That was a shame. Well, screw him! She may not be in the best of situations, but she knew better than to accept the pity of others.

"Thanks but I don't need your charity, I am capable of taking care of myself," she growled, turning to glare out the window.

"Then do it as a favour to me, for last night and this morning. Please!" the car had stopped outside her house, and he twisted in the seat to look at her. His gaze was beseeching, pleading. His eyes were so big and innocent she couldn't even speak. For the first time in her life, she was left gaping mutely.

"Well, I…I-I mean…" she babbled incoherently. Damn those eyes. Finally, she agreed. Swapping numbers, she bid him adieu and stepped out of the car, watching it as it sped off into the distance, and she was left alone on the cold empty street. The wind whistled emptily through the lane.

She wasn't sure what to feel. Confused, happy, lonely, upset, annoyed? A wave of tiredness swept over her, and she yawned noisily. Using the spare key, she bumbled into the tiny house, stumbling up the stairs to her room. She collapsed on the bed without removing her shoes. Her last conscious thought was the realisation that she hadn't returned his jacket, before the chains of sleep pulled her under. Blessed sleep.

**Thanks guys, please review, love you all and hopefully I'll update soon!**


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